Research Assistant/Associate in Data Sonification for Planetaria & Science Centres

Salary:

Research Assistant: £32,296 to £33,882 per annum

Research Associate: £34,866 per annum

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits. We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 05 January 2025

The Role

This is an exciting opportunity be part of a project to turn the Universe into sound! A new project will start in 2025 between academics at Newcastle University and Northumbria University, planetariums and science centres across the UK, and a planetarium software company. The goal is to present astronomical objects and concepts with sound (through the process of sonification) as a complement to standard visual methods. The motivation is to provide more immersive educational experiences, and to provide a more inclusive educational environment for those who need – or prefer – nonvisual methods of communication (e.g., blind and low vision audiences, those with wider special educational needs and disabilities).

This specific post is to take leadership on developing software for a “sonification toolkit”, designed to enable planetarium presenters to easily create their own audio files, via sonification, for use in educational shows. The software will connect to online astronomical databases and provide the communicators with options for producing the sounds. We are exploring both stand-alone software, as well as embedding directly into the widely used DigiStar system.  

You will be situated within the School of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics, at Newcastle University, working directly with Dr Chris Harrison. However, you will be also embedded within an exciting new “sonification hub”, which starts early 2025, across both Newcastle and Northumbria Unversities. This new research initiative into sonification methods and perception, includes academic members of staff, research associates and PhD students spanning computer science, music, astrophysics, material science, and mathematical sciences. Furthermore, as a member of the Audio Universe project, you will have collaborators across other UK and international institutions. 

This position could be ideal for people with a wide variety of backgrounds. For example: a recent graduate with coding experience looking for a high impact  educational-focussed project; an early-career astronomer looking for experience in a high impact coding project and/or science communication; or somebody with technical sonification experience looking for an exciting sonification high-impact application project. 

This post is full-time over 12 months (fixed term), but part-time options can be discussed. The post-holder will expected to be able to regularly work on the Newcastle University campus. Some UK-based travel, to visit project partners, may also be required. 

The start date is expected around May 2025. Interviews are expected to be conducted in the last two weeks of January. 

For any enquires about the role, please contact: Dr Chris Harrison christopher.harrison@newcastle.ac.uk 
 

To apply, please complete the online application and provide a CV and covering letter. The covering letter should detail how your experience and qualifications match the essential criteria listed below.

Audio Universe: www.audiouniverse.org

Sonification Hub: https://sonicintangibles.github.io/

The Person 
 

Knowledge, Skills and Experience 

• Experience working with code for analysing datasets; including fitting models to data, interpolation of data, and cleaning data (ideally using Python) 
• Strong working knowledge of methods and techniques suitable for collaborative software development with online repositories
• Demonstrable outputs from programming projects, including shared code repositories, and/or research articles
• Experience/knowledge of working with large databases and associated metadata
• A basic/informal working knowledge of astronomy (e.g., understanding the different types of astronomical objects, how to locate objects on the sky etc.)

Desirable

• Experience producing audio-visual assets to communicate for a wide range of audiences (e.g., videos, digital interactives, Virtual Reality experiences) 
• Experience working with astrophysics databases from astronomical observatories and/or simulations
• Experience of production and/or research of data sonification
• Experience of working in wider object-oriented programming languages (including JavaScript, C++)
• Experience working with young people in educational contexts, including through with special educational needs
• Demonstrable ability to lead in the running of experiments, interviews, focus groups, and other related activities with research participants

Attributes and Behaviour

• Ability to work independently using own initiative, set own goals, be self-motivated and to meet strict deadlines
• Demonstrable ability to work cooperatively as part of a team, including participating in meetings and working on joint projects with internal and external partners
• High level analytical and problem-solving capability, including excellent record keeping and attention to detail
• Excellent communication skills in both written and verbal forms to a variety of expert and non-expert audiences

Desirable:

• Experience of fostering collaborative links, building relationships with key partners internally and externally
• Demonstrable commitment to promoting a positive and healthy workplace culture (e.g., by actively supporting/mentoring students, supporting initiatives to improve the work environment etc.)
• Demonstrable commitment to promoting the values of equity, diversity and inclusion. 

Qualifications

• Completed PhD in relevant discipline (Astrophysics, Computer Science) (Essential for Research associate)
• Honours Degree in relevant discipline (i.e., Astrophysics, Computer Science, or any other with significant component of programming / data analysis)

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.  As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society.  We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent.  We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a silver Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.  We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC.  We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe. 

Requisition ID: 27751